Marking machine



July'28f192 5.

- G. L. ,KEENE MARKING MACHINE Filed Sept 25. 1924 Patented July 28,1925.

UNITED STATE PA NT. OFFICE.

GUY-L. xnnmaor BROCKTON, MASSACHUSETTS; ASSIGNOR TOUNITED SHOE ACHIN- iERY CORPORATION, or PATERISONLNEW JERsE A ooRroRA'rIoN, on NEW JERsEYQMARKING MACHINE.

Application'filed September 25, 1924. Serial No. 739,937.

To, all whom it may canoe 1%: I Be it known that I, GUY L. KEENE, a

' zen of the United States,residing at Brookton, in the county ofPlymouth and Commonwealth of Massachusetts have invented certainImprovements in Marking Machines, of which the following description, inconnection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, likereference characters on the drawings indicating like parts in theseveral figures. T

This invention relates to marking machines and more particularly to thetype-carrying heads thereof.

Marking machines for numberingand labeling shoe parts-,clothing andthelike are commonly arranged to apply a row of characters, which must bechanged frequently, combined with other printed. matter such as changedless frequently. An arrangement of this character is illustrated inUnited States Letters Patent No. 1,170, 90, granted February 1, 1916, onthe application of Edward B. Parkhurst, in which the marking head isprovided with a plurality of rotatable type-wheels bearing numbers orletters adapted to be adjusted at will together with a type-plate,sometimes called a' trade-. plate, upon which-other printed matter hasbeen engraved. As shown in said patent, the type-plate is detachable andretained in position uponthe marking head by jaws, one of which ispivoted andjresilientlyheld in clamping position so that it maybereleased and the plate removed at will. Itis desirable that thecharacters 'upon the type plate shall be as close as possible to thecharacters on'the type-wheels'when the impression is made so that thewhole imprint may occupy as little'space as possible and,- in the caseof-shoes, may all be mar the top of the lining of the shoe. On theotherhand, .rotation of thetype-wheels without interference with the edges ofthe type-plate upon which the fixed rows of, characters appear requiresthat the slot through wh-ichthe characters on the type-wheels pass shallbe of substantial size; In order to attain as.

compact an arrangement as is desirable, the name-plates are commonlyarranged with only a narrow slot, and the rows ofcharacters are disposedalong the sides of this slot. The width of this slot may be only so muchas is necessary to admit a single'row of type cition the type-wheels. Inview of this arrangement, the operator, when-shevwishes to turn thetype-wheels, must open the jaws and partially or wholly remove thenameplate. In the arrangement disclosed in the Parkhurst patent,-theopeningof the jaws allows the plateto'drop out. The common practice isfor the operator to catch the plate in her hand and thenafter settingthe typewheels, return theplate to position and lock it in positionwithin the jaws. This soils the operato-rs hand andis, of course,inconvenient and time-consuming. 1 v

Accordingly an objectof the invention is to provide a retainer for "thetype-plate of a marking head, which will allow the partial separation ofthe type-plate from the typewheels when the plate is released withoutallowing itwholly to drop out of the jaws. names or trade-marks, whichneed i to be r In the illustrated machine, in accordance withfeatures-of the invention, a projecting stud is inserted-inone side ofthe frame of the marking head and a retaining bail pivotally connectedto the ends of the typeplate is passed around'the ends and side of themarking head and disposed abovethe projecting stud.

The dimensions of the bail and adjacent parts are 'suchthat when the Fora. more icomplete' understanding of the invention, reference maybe-hadto the following specification taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawing in which: Fig. 1 is a front elevation head embodyingthinvention;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation partly in section showing the type-plate heldin position by the.jaws;'and" [Fig 3 is a'similar elevation showing thetype-plate released from the movable jaw and supported by the bail.

Marking machines of the type under conof a marking loo sideration arecommonly provided with a worlr support and a reciprocating oroscillating mechanism adapted to carry the typecarrying marking headinto and out of contact vith the work. For the purpose of illustration,there has been shown a type-head having a frame 10 within which aresup-- ported type-wheels 12, 14, 16, etc, capable of being turned on orwith a shaft 18 trictionally engaging said wheels. The shaft 18isprovided with an operating handle 20. Latches. 22 having finger pieces24 are. provided for each individual type-wheel, and the latchesnormally hold the type-wheels in fined position but may be released bydepreisin-g thefirrger pieces 24 to allow the setting ot one or moretype-Wheels by rotation o l? the operating handle 20.

In order that the machine may be enabled to print more than thecharacters provided upon the typewheels, the frame 1t) of the markinghead is provided with jaws 26 and 28 which are slotted to: engage theedges of a type-plate 30. The slotted jaw 28- is displaceably supportedupon, a hell crank lever 32 provided with a finger piece 34: and normallyl-ield in closed position; by means of a spring-operated plunger 36.The. type plate may take any one oii a large variety of i orins and isherein illustrated as provided with a detach-ablev electrotype 38 andarow of interchangeable type-members 40 which are placed adjacent to theedges Oili a slot in: said plate which receives that row 42 of type onthe type-wheels which is inoperative position for marking the work. Thearrangement oit' the type-plate; is such that the marking surfacesot theremovabletypemembers 40, the row of type 42, and theelectrotype 38 areflush. with one another.

To allow the partial separation otthe type-pl-ate troni the type-headwithout fully releasing it when the movable jaw 28 is opened, aplate-retainer having the form of a bail d3, preferably constructedofspring wire, is provided. The intu-rned ends of the bail 43 areentered in sockets a l at the ends of the typeplate adjacent to the edgewhich is; received within the groove of the fixed jaw' 26, and then theloopof the bail is passcdaroundthe ends and across the side of the frameof the marking head above a stud 4,6. The retaining bail is so adjustedand designed that when the. jaw 28 is opened, the plate will bepartia'lly released and will drop to the position illustrated in Fig; 3 in whichit is retained, supported by the bail and by frictional engagement ofthe upper surface. of the plate withthe lower surface ofthe frame of themarking head and by engagement of the lateral edge of the platewith thelateral face of the fixed jaw 26. By relieving the upper edge d7 of thetype-plate, as by cham'teri ng, the operator is enabled completely toremove the type-plate from the marking head by turning it around thepoints of attachment. of the ends. of the bail and the corner 48 of the26 until it has been rotated through substantially 180 degrees,whereupon it may be moved aterally to remove it from the marking head.It will be noted also that the lower corner 50 of the grooved movable aw28 is slightly beveled so that the type-plate may be pressed into thegroove of the movable jaw 28 without necessarily depressing the fingerpiece 24 thereof.

In using the machine, whenever the operator'wishesto change the positionof the. typewheeis, she will first depress the finger piece 554i andallow the type-plate to drop into the position shown in Fig. 3 where itwill be held by the action oi the retaining bail 43.

She will then depress the particular finger piece 24: corresponding tothe type-wheel which it is desired to rotate and by turning theoperating handle 20 will bring into position in the row or" types 42 theparticular character which it is desired to use. Preferably she willthen replace the typeplate within the aw 28, but if this action on?replacement is torgotten, the plate will be prrhed into position and thejaw 28 will snap over the edge of the plate when the ag head isdepressed. ha ving thus described the invention, What I claim as new anddesire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

I. In a type-head, type-carriers supported in said head, a type-plateadapted to be brought into 'co-operative relation with a row ofcharacters on said type-carriers, a jaw member co-operating with oneedge of said type-plate to position it upon the typehead, and a.retaining member co-operating with the last-mentioned edge of the typeplate and the type-head, said retainingmember and said jaw member beingconstructed and arranged supportsaid type-plate in a position tiltedaway from the type-carriers so that the type-carriers may be adjusted tochange the row of characters in printing position.

2.. In a type-head, type-carriers supported in said head, a. type-plateadapted'to be brought intoco-operative relation to a row of characterson said type-carriers, a jaw member co -operating with one edge of saidtype-plate to position it upon the type-head, a retaining memberco-operating with the last-mentioned edge of the type-plate and thetype-head, said retaining member and said jaw member being, constructedand arranged to. support said type-plate in a. po-

sition separated from the type-carriers sothat the type-carriers may beadjusted to change the row oi characters in printing position, and meanson said type-hea d co-operating with the other edge of the type-plate toretain the type-plate in printing position with its printing Surfacesubstantially flush with the row of characters on the type-carrier.

3. In a type-head, a supporting surface, a fixed jaw adjacent to oneside of said surface, a type-plate, displaceable means acting inconjunction with said fixed ja'w to retain the type-plate normallyagainst said sup porting surface and allowing it to drop away from saidsurface when displaced, and other meansto retain said plate in a position slightly separated from the supporting surface when released fromthe displaceable means. I

4. In a type-head, a supporting surface, a fixed jaw adjacent to oneside of saidsurface, a type-plate, displaceable'means acting inconjunction with said fixed jaw to retain the type-plate normallyagainst said supporting surface and allowing it to drop away from saidsurface when displaced, and other means acting in conjunction'with saidfixed jaw to retain said plate'in a position slightly separated from thesupporting surface. whenreleased from the displaceable means.

5. In a type-head,- a type-plate resting against a supporting surface ofsaid head, a frame provided with a lateral recess adapted to receive andsupport the lateral edge of the typeplate, a projection on the frame,and a retaining bail passing over said fixed projection pivotallysecured to the ends of the type-plate, said bail being constructed andarranged to support the type-plate inengagement with said recess, and ina position slightly separated from the platesupporting surface upon thetype-head.

6. In a type-head, a frame,"one or more type-wheels rotatably mountedwithin said frame, jaws upon said frame one of which is movable, atype-plate having characters flush with the character upon thetype-wheel and held in position by said jaws,'and a re taining bailengaging the-edges of the'type plate away from the movable jaw andpassing over a projecting part of the type-head, arranged to allow thetype-plate to be separated sufficiently from the type-head to al- 7 lowrotational adjustment of the type-wheel 7 without wholly removing thetype-plate from the type-head. V

7. In a type-head, a plurality of typewheels rotatably mountedforadjustment within said head to bring a row of characters in positionadjacent to the end of the head for marking the work, a slottedtypeplate disposed on the head so that the row of characters on thetype-Wheels passes through the slot of the type-plate, said plate havingcharacters flush with the row of characters on the wheel, said headbeing provided with a fixed jaw anda movable jaw arranged to receive andretain the edges of said type-plate, and a retaining bail passing over afixed projection uponthe type-head with its ends bent and attached tothe ends of the type-plate adjacent to the fixed jaw,

said bail being constructed and arranged to support the type-plate in aposition suflici ently separated from the type-wheels, when,

the type-platehas been released by opening the movable jaw, so that thetype-plate will not interfere with the adjustment of the type-wheels.

.8 In a type-head, a frame provided with i a grooved jaw, an opposedmovable grooved jaw mounted on said frame, a plurality of type-wheelsrotatably supported within said frame for adjustment to bring a row ofcharacters into marking positlon between said jaws, a slotted type-platepositioned in entering'the sockets of the type-plate, constructed andarranged to allow the type v plateto be separated sufficiently from theI type-wheels to allow their adjustment and arranged to support thetype-plate when released by the opening of the movable jaw to prevent itfrom dropping out of the. ma-v chine, the upper edge of said type-plateadjacent to the fixed jaw being relieved sufliciently to allow therotation of the type-plate around the points of attachment of the bailto permit its removal from and insertion in the fixed jaw of thetype-head.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification;

GUY L. KEENE.

